A HAYES businessman has been jailed for laundering more than half a million pounds overseas.

Ajit Arora, 45, of St Mary's Road, was sentenced to four years after admitting to transferring the funds over 10 months through his business, a Money Service Bureau (MSB) trading as MSB Helmkunt Forex.

Arora, part of an organised crime gang, also used false documents to claim $90,000 that had been banked by fellow gang member, Nadeem Karimzada, with a third party MSB, to be transferred abroad,

Arora was arrested and charged with money laundering offences and tendering false documents.

His sentencing, on December 16 last year, came to light after Karimzada, 21, of Hammersmith, was jailed for three years at Croydon Crown Court on Friday for personally laundering about £2.5million.

Karimzada, who provided money laundering services for other gangs involved in serious crimes including drug dealing, came to the attention of Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs (HMRC) when he reversed into an HMRC car on an undercover operation in Southall.

HMRC ran checks on the car and the driver, kick-starting the investigation, which revealed Karimzada had transferred cash to organisations in Afghanistan, Pakistan, China, India and the United Arab Emirates.